Romans 13:1-7
Notes
Transcript
Governing Authorities
Governing Authorities
1 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment. 3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 4 for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience. 6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. 7 Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
In Chapter 12, we discussed how we interact with believers and non-believers. Now, we look more at how we are to approach those in positions of authority. With elections closely behind us, and with the questions and skepticism that have followed, I feel this is timely - even though we may cast a ballot, we need to be very aware that it is God who establishes the governments. If we think back to the Kinds of Israel, very few were good. Sometimes God uses these un-Godly leaders as a way to teach or pass judgment on His people.
21 He changes times and seasons;
he removes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding;
We have to keep in mind, human rulers was not the original way God wanted to rule His people. It was when His people who petitioned Him that the prophets should be replaced by judges and ultimately kings. We cannot forget that no authority exists except that God allows it, showing us he is still the sovereign ruler and authority.
Believers are to submit to governmental and civil authorities. Doesn’t matter who appointed them or how they were appointed. Doesn’t matter if it was a legitimate or illegitimate process, or whether they are just or unjust in the way they rule. They are to be obeyed - in the civil realm. The authority of government does not extend beyond its position as CIVIL governing bodies and/or authorities. One commentary used this example “Paul commands wives to obey their husbands, they are required to obey them as husbands, not as masters or kings. Children are to obey their parents as parents, not as sovereigns. So it is in the case of government leaders”. Where we have conflict is when the CIVIL government or authorities try to pass laws conflicting with the clear and concise commands of God. It is then that we, as Christians, have to rely on:
29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.
Civil authorities are NOT rulers of divine rights when they conflict with God’s Word, and we should be reminded of this. On the same token, though, if the laws and rules passed are NOT in conflict with God, we are to follow them.
1 Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. 2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.
Government was put in place by God - the position, the authority, and the offices. Where things tend to go wrong are with this - those positions are filled by men. We, as believers, have the responsibility to elect faithful men and women to do God’s will as leaders in position of authority. They should also be reminded that, as rulers, they will answer and give account to God.
12 It is an abomination to kings to do evil,
for the throne is established by righteousness.
However, we cannot forget, once they are elected into an office - we can not control their actions or their decision. But we can control ours. A believer can control their behavior as a citizen and their response to authority. We should be reminded that, the choice to resist those in authority will also place us under judgment.
26 Whoever will not obey the law of your God and the law of the king, let judgment be strictly executed on him, whether for death or for banishment or for confiscation of his goods or for imprisonment.”
3 For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, and you will receive his approval, 4 for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience.
Government has been put in place to maintain decency, rules,laws, and order. As a result, EVIL should be restrained, not GOOD. That way evil is punished and good is upheld. As believers, we should obey the laws, and do good. By setting this example, we contribute to the overall good of the citizenry.
Unfortunately it seems some leaders are trying their best to do the exact opposite, trying to convince us that evil is good and good is evil. The problem, as I see it, is we have lowered our standards for governmental officials to the point we are tolerating evil and lawless people being put in places of authority, not even following the laws they expect others to follow, and as a result evil is running rampant in our government.
Governing officials must remember that scripture says they are servants of God for our good. They have the expectation to maintain the welfare of its citizens.
On the same token, if WE do what is wrong, we should be afraid of what punishment we will receive. As Christians, we have to hold ourselves above reproach, we cannot ask authorities to be held blameless when we, ourselves, are breaking laws, not respecting the position, and feel as though we can do so “in the name of the Lord” and escape punishment. It just isn’t so. The believer is to obey the laws and rules, if for no other reason to understand that they not only can be punished by the ruling authorities but to fear the punishment of God. Paul eludes to the impact it has on our conscience. If we think of our conscience, a clear conscience that comes by doing what is right in the eyes of God leaves us with peace and hope. However a tainted conscience brings us nothing but heartache and pain. If we as believers willfully disobey the laws of the lands, our conscience cannot be clear.
16 having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.
If we do what is right in the eyes of God, it does not mean that we will not be persecuted. But, we still have a clear conscience that allows us to find peace in God. Then we can let Him fight our battle for us.
6 For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing. 7 Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.
The government has also been mandated to take care of the people, including providing certain benefits for the citizens. As a result, funds are needed to provide these benefits. And, you guessed it, we have been told to pay for the benefits they provide us with (and in some cases pay for the benefits on top of the taxes, and in other cases pay taxes on the benefits that are paid for by our taxes, ha!) To get back to scripture, though, we are told we are to pay taxes to attend to these things. Notice what the authorities are called - the ministers of God. Again, whether they are good or bad, they still are fulfilling a role God has placed them in. Each of us are obligated to pay for the benefits we receive from the government, and I don’t know about you all, but I like having somewhat maintained roads, a place to haul off my trash, a safe source of drinking water, electricity, telephones, the internet and other things we have grown accustomed to. And notice we are not only to pay for taxes, but pay for all that is owed! It doesn’t matter where we have an obligation from (the government, the bank, credit union, etc), we are to fulfill that obligation by paying what we owe. We are to set the example and be good citizens, living above reproach.
At times, it seems like it becomes harder and harder to think of our government as being a Godly establishment. But remember we only control our own actions, and cannot dictate how others act, rule, or govern, but we are still required to give respect to those God has placed in those positions.
